Serotonin — What makes you happy

Day 296 / 365

I read the novel “A Brave New World” a while back. It described a utopian world where no one was ever sad. This is because the government always gave supplies of a drug to all the citizens, that drug would make them feel pure happiness each and every time. Everyone took it, it was considered foolish to ever feel sad if happiness was just a pill away.

That made me think about if something like this could happen in our world. So I looked into what made us happy, and I was looking at the scientific answer not a philosophical one. We have a chemical in our brain called Serotonin, which is responsible for the happy feeling. So why can’t we just create pills that increase this chemical in our brains, to make us feel happy when we feel sad?

Well, obviously we already have such pills. They are called Anti-Depressants. But no one can just go and buy some of these. Unlike the novel, in real life, you would have to consult a psychiatrist who would carefully study your case and only prescribe some if necessary. Even then he would start you off with a low dose.

The chemicals in our brains and their functions are quite complicated. And it is important for the balance to be right, otherwise, there can be many side-effects. Which is why we can’t blindly keep increasing the Serotonin levels in our brains.

The other reason is that our bodies are naturally efficient. If it is getting Serotonin externally, it will not waste time producing its own. Thus with time you would develop a dependence on the external supply to feel happy.

Just to clarify, I am not saying taking medication is bad. If you think you are having problems with depression, of course you should seek help.

This post is part of my 365 Day Project for 2019. Read about it here

Yesterday’s blog — The Wait Dilemma